"It helps with learning magic."

"Our writing isn't stupid and hard."

"Oh? Maybe you can teach me, though I wouldn't try translating anything related to magic, the magic might not like that."

"Eh I don't feel like it."

"Okay. You're probably gonna have to get better about doing things you don't feel like but this one doesn't seem important."

Segda hisses again, softly.

"I know someone who's a King and he still has to do things he doesn't feel like. Everyone does. Maybe not dragons, I guess."

"Not me. I'm only going to do what I want forever."

" - okay."

"I'm hungry."

"We'll buy eggs in Ninpai."

"Will that take a long time?"

"I doubt it. They didn't seem to mind me and they didn't seem to mind strangers."

"To get there."

"Couple miles. I've been riding a lot lately, I don't want to ask my horse to go faster."

"Rrrr."

"I packed a little food but it's jerky, I don't know if it's food for your species."

"I want it."

She fishes it out of her bag. "You should probably only eat a little and see if you feel sick before you have more."

Segda wolfs down a whole strip.

Maybe she should attempt reverse psychology when she actually wants this kid to do things. 

On they go.

Segda occasionally halts the trip to:

- go pick flowers
- splash in a creek
- chase a squirrel and scream when it escapes
- try staring at the scroll again

This seems like sort of what you should be prepared for when halfway adopting random runaways of an unfamiliar race of beings. Iris mostly does not try to discourage it, aside from reminding it that they can't get eggs until they reach the village.

Segda eats another strip of jerky. It throws up half an hour later.

"That's why you shouldn't eat a lot of an unfamiliar food."